Bicycle shoe

ABSTRACT

A pedal connection arrangement includes a pedal having a spherical portion with an outer spherical surface. The pedal connection arrangement also includes a bicycle shoe that has a pedal gripping cavity that directly engages at least portions of the outer spherical surface of the pedal when the shoe is engaged with the pedal. The shoe is configured so that the pedal gripping cavity securely grips outer spherical surface of the pedal, yet remains free to swivel in various directions about the spherical portion of the pedal when the shoe is engaged with the pedal. The various directions include directions other than about the pedal longitudinal axis, thereby giving more flexibility for movement of the rider&#39;s foot while maintaining positive contact between the shoe and the pedal.

This application is a continuation application of copending applicationSer. No. 11/517,133 filed Sep. 6, 2006 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,540,101;which is a continuation application of application Ser. No. 10/457,623filed Jun. 9, 2003 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,104,158 on Sep. 12,2006; which is a Continuation-in-part application of application Ser.No. 10/038,374 filed on Dec. 31, 2001 and now abandoned; which is acontinuation application of application Ser. No. 09/887,754 filed onJun. 25, 2001 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,543,308 on Apr. 8, 2003;which is a continuation-in-part application of application Ser. No.09/498,797 filed on Feb. 6, 2000 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,276,234on Aug. 21, 2001; which is a continuation application of applicationSer. No. 09/146,766, filed on Sep. 3, 1998 and issued as U.S. Pat. No.6,199,449 on Mar. 13, 2001; the disclosures of which are allincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to bicycle components and morespecifically to pedal and pedal to shoe connection assemblies andmethods.

Presently, bicycles have grown to a high level of popularity and manybicycles are highly specialized for certain applications. Thesespecialized applications impose extraordinary requirements on variousbicycle components. Despite these extraordinary requirements, many ofthe basic bicycle components have remained relatively unchanged forquite some time. For occasional riders, bicycles in their present formmay be sufficient. However, specialty bicycles such as mountain bikes,racing bikes, daily commute bikes, and other specialized bikes have manycomponents that could be significantly improved. One such component isthe bicycle crank assembly.

Current crank assemblies are made up of a spindle that is mounted withina bottom bracket of a bicycle frame for rotation about a crank assemblyrotational axis. Right and left crank arms are attached to the spindleand right and left pedals are attached to the ends of the right and leftcrank arms. The crank arms and spindle are often subjected tosubstantial stresses. Often times the rider has minimal time to react tochanging trail or road conditions such as rough terrain or potholes.These jarring trail and road conditions place a heavy burden upon themechanical integrity of the crank assembly.

The pedals, crank arms, and spindle have the severe task of carrying themajority of the rider's weight, the impact loads caused by roughterrain, as well as transforming the riders leg motions into the torquethat propels the rider and the bicycle. Therefore, the crank assembly issubjected to a significant amount of torque. The continuous crankingmotion, combined with the high degree of torque, over an extended periodof time, causes wear and may eventually lead to the failure of the crankarm and/or the point where the crank arm connects to the spindle.

The most widely accepted crank arm/spindle connection system currentlyavailable is a system that utilizes a right and left crank arm, usuallymade of an aluminum alloy, and a hardened steel or titanium spindle. Thespindle has four flats machined at a slight angle on each end of thespindle creating a tapered protruding square. The tapered protrudingsquare usually is about ½″ to ⅝″ in length. The crank arm has a matingtapered square cavity formed into one end of the crank arm. Theattachment of the crank arm to the spindle is achieved by pressing thetapered square cavity of the crank arm over the tapered squareprotrusion of the spindle. This press fit typically relies on distortionat the points of contact between the crank and the spindle to hold thecrank arm engaged with the spindle. A nut or bolt is also typicallytightened against the outer portion of the crank arm to hold the crankarm onto the spindle.

While the tapered square configuration may seem at first glance a viableand economical method of attaching the crank arms to the spindle, itsuffers in one major area. Although the tapered square may adequatelytransfer the torque from the rider to drive system, it does not do avery good job of preventing the crank arm from rocking or oscillating onthe spindle. This oscillating motion in which the crank arm rocksindependently of the spindle occurs because of the excessive, andconstantly changing loads imposed on the crank system.

With continued use, the oscillating motion may deform the shape of thetapered square connection system. Once enough deformation occurs, thecrank arms become useless. There are shapes other than tapered squaresthat are currently used to transfer of torque between the crank arm andthe spindle such as a spline or a tapered spline. Some include a splinein conjunction with a clamping arrangement that further tightens thesplined portion of the crank arm around the mating splined portion ofthe spindle. Regardless of the shape used in transferring torque fromthe crank arm through the spindle to the other crank arm, all of thesystems could be improved through a system that would eliminate theindependent oscillating movement of the crank arms on the spindle.

Additionally, with the tapered square configuration, a crank arm pulleris typically required in order to remove the crank arms from thespindle. This is a difficult and time consuming procedure. Manybicyclists are not willing to take on this procedure and therefore thisconfiguration discourages the proper servicing of the spindle componentssuch as spindle bearings. Also, in the case of racing bikes, a brokencrank arm or spindle of this type during the course of a race virtuallyinsures that the racer is out of the race due to the time required tochange the spindle or crank arm.

The present invention discloses an improved crank arm/spindle connectionarrangement that utilizes two spaced apart load bearing surfaces forinterconnecting two separate spindle portions. The two spaced apart loadbearing surfaces provide a stabilized connection arrangement forinterconnecting the two spindle portions. A novel spline arrangement isalso disclosed for interconnecting the two spindle portions. This twopiece spindle arrangement eliminates the conventional connection pointsbetween each of the crank arms and the spindle.

Another problem with conventional crank arm systems is that the chainrings that are driven by the crank arms are typically attached to theinside of the crank arms. Because of this configuration, the crank armtypically needs to be removed in order to remove the chain rings. Asmentioned above, since a crank puller is typically required to removethe crank arm, it is difficult to quickly remove and replace a chainring. The present invention discloses a quick change chain ringarrangement that allows the chain ring to be removed and replacedwithout requiring the crank arm to be removed.

In conventional crank assemblies, the chain rings are typically fixed tothe associated crank arm as mentioned above. Because of this, it can bedifficult to properly align the chain rings with other bicyclecomponents such as a front derailleur. Often times, a specialty bike isassembled from components provided by a variety of manufacturers. Thesemanufacturers often have varying spacing and positioning requirementsfor their components. This further contributes to the difficulties inproperly aligning the various components of the bicycle. The presentinvention discloses a chain ring alignment system that allows theposition of the chain rings of the crank assembly to be adjusted alongthe crank assembly rotational axis.

In many circumstances, it would be desirable to provide crank arms witha larger crank arm radius. This would provide greater leverage to therider and allow more driving force to be exerted for a given amount ofeffort from the rider. However, the length of the crank arms ofconventional crank assemblies are limited by the ground clearance of thecrank arms. Also, as the crank arm radius is increased, the rider mustmove the pedals around a larger circumference which takes a longeramount of time. This takes away from the leverage benefits provided bylonger crank arms. The present invention discloses a variable lengthcrank arm arrangement that allows the crank arm length to be increasedduring the downward stroke of the crank arm rotation and shortenedduring the upward stroke. This increases the leverage available to therider during the downward stroke of the pedal rotation, as would be thecase with a longer fixed crank arm. However, the variable length crankarm reduces the distance the pedal is required to travel during a crankassembly rotation compared to a longer fixed crank. Furthermore, thevariable length crank arm arrangement may be configured to increase theground clearance of the crank assembly.

Another problem associated with conventional crank assemblies involvescurrently available arrangements for connecting a bicycle shoe to apedal. Typically, bicycle shoes include a clip for attaching the shoe tothe pedal. These clips are normally engaged by properly aligning theclip on the shoe with an associated protrusion on one of the flats ofthe pedal. This arrangement requires the rider to first position thepedal with the protrusion facing up and then align the clip on the shoewith the protrusion before engaging the clip. This can be an awkwardprocedure that can at times be dangerous. Also, once clipped in, theconnection may be difficult to quickly disengage causing potentialsafety concerns. The present invention discloses a bicycle shoe to pedalconnection arrangement that simplifies the process of engaging anddisengaging the shoe to pedal connection.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

As will be described in more detail hereinafter, a pedal connectionarrangement and method for holding a bicycle rider's foot attached to abicycle pedal is disclosed. The pedal connection arrangement includes apedal having a pedal longitudinal axis around which the pedal isintended to rotate. The pedal includes a spherical portion having anouter spherical surface with the spherical portion having an engagingsurface. The engaging surface includes at least portions of the outerspherical surface of the spherical portion of the pedal and thespherical portion of the pedal is located along the pedal longitudinalaxis such that the pedal has a radially symmetrical cross sectionalshape along the pedal longitudinal axis. The pedal connectionarrangement also includes a bicycle shoe having a pedal grippingarrangement. The pedal gripping arrangement includes a pedal grippingcavity and the pedal gripping cavity has a shape that is defined by atleast a portion of a sphere such that the pedal gripping cavity directlyengages at least portions of the outer spherical surface of thespherical portion of the pedal when the pedal gripping arrangement isengaged with the spherical portion of the pedal. This allows the pedalgripping arrangement to be engaged with the spherical portion of thepedal when the pedal is in any position regardless of the rotationalposition of the pedal about the pedal longitudinal axis. The pedalgripping arrangement is configured in such a way that the pedal grippingarrangement securely grips at least portions of the engaging surface ofthe spherical portion of the pedal, yet remains free to swivel invarious directions about the spherical portion of the pedal to at leasta predetermined degree when the pedal gripping arrangement is engagedwith the pedal. The various directions include directions other thanabout the pedal longitudinal axis, thereby giving more flexibility formovement of the rider's foot while maintaining positive contact betweenthe pedal gripping arrangement and the spherical portion of the pedal.

In one embodiment, the pedal includes an attaching arrangement forattaching the pedal to a bicycle crank arm. In this embodiment, theattaching arrangement cooperates with the pedal gripping arrangement toprovide an arrangement for limiting the degree to which the pedalgripping arrangement is able to swivel about an axis that isperpendicular to the pedal longitudinal axis.

In another embodiment, the pedal includes a first end configured forattaching the pedal to a bicycle crank arm, a second end, and a centralportion located between the first and second ends. In this embodiment,the spherical portion of the pedal is intersected by a cylindricalportion that extends entirely through the spherical portion of the pedalsuch that the spherical portion is located at the central portion of thepedal and the cylindrical portion extends to the second end of thepedal. With this configuration, the cylindrical portion may be used tocooperate with the pedal gripping arrangement to providing anarrangement for limiting the degree to which the pedal grippingarrangement is able to swivel about an axis that is perpendicular to thepedal longitudinal axis

The pedal gripping arrangement may be an independently formed grippingdevice that is attached to the bicycle shoe. Alternatively, the pedalgripping arrangement may be formed as part of the bicycle shoe. Also,the pedal gripping arrangement may be made from a pliable material thatallows a rider to release the shoe from the pedal by bending their toesup out of a natural relaxed position causing the pedal grippingarrangement to flex thereby expanding the pedal gripping arrangement andcausing the pedal gripping arrangement to release the pedal. Using apliable material also allows the rider to more tightly grip the pedal bybending their toes down out of a natural relaxed position causing thepedal gripping arrangement to flex thereby compressing the pedalgripping arrangement and causing the pedal gripping arrangement to moretightly grip the pedal. Alternatively, the pedal gripping arrangementmay be hinged adjacent to the pedal gripping arrangement such that arider is able to release the shoe from the pedal by bending their toesup out of a natural relaxed position causing the pedal grippingarrangement to expand and release the pedal. The shoe may furtherinclude a biasing arrangement for biasing the pedal gripping arrangementinto a position that grips the pedal when the rider's foot is in anatural relaxed position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features of the present invention may best be understood byreference to the following description of the presently preferredembodiments together with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a first embodiment of abicycle crank arm assembly designed in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is exploded view of the crank arm assembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the crank arm assembly of FIG. 1taken along section 4-4.

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the spindle portions of the crankarm assembly of FIG. 1 taken along section 4-4.

FIG. 5 is a partially exploded and partially cut away view of the crankarm assembly of FIG. 1 illustrating one embodiment of a connectiondevice for connecting the spindle portions.

FIG. 6A is a partially exploded view of one embodiment of a tapered pinretention device in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 6B is an exploded view of one embodiment of a biasing arrangementin accordance with the invention for exerting an equal amount ofpressure on each of the tapered pins of the tapered pin retaining deviceof FIG. 6A.

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view of connection device of FIG. 5.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a variable lengthcrank arm arrangement designed in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 9 is a second perspective view from a different angle of thevariable length crank arm arrangement of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a third perspective view of a portion of the variable lengthcrank arm arrangement of FIG. 8.

FIG. 11A is a plan view of a pedal designed in accordance with theinvention.

FIG. 11B is a plan view of a second pedal and an associated pedalgripping arrangement designed in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 11C is a plan view of the pedal and gripping arrangement of FIG.11B illustrating the ability of the gripping arrangement to swivel aboutthe pedal.

FIG. 12A is a perspective view of a bicycle shoe designed in accordancewith the invention.

FIG. 12 B is a perspective view of a second bicycle shoe designed inaccordance with the invention.

FIG. 12 C is a perspective view of the bicycle shoe of FIG. 12Billustrating a hinging feature of this embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a cross sectional perspective view of one embodiment of asplined bearing cartridge assembly designed in accordance with theinvention.

FIG. 14 is a partially exploded view of the splined bearing cartridgeassembly of FIG. 13.

FIGS. 15A-E are partially cut away perspective views of the bicyclecrank arm assembly of FIG. 1 illustrating the removal of the quickchange chain ring support in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a partially cut away perspective view of another embodimentof a quick change chain ring arrangement in accordance with the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An invention is described for providing an improved bicycle crank. Inthe following description, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. Itwill be obvious, however, to one skilled in the art, that the presentinvention may be embodied in a wide variety of specific configurations.Also, well known bicycle components and hardware have not been describedin detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention.

Turning to the drawings, wherein like components are designated by likereference numerals throughout the various figures, attention isinitially directed to FIGS. 1-4. These figures illustrate a variousviews of a first embodiment of a crank arm assembly 100 designed inaccordance with the invention. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of theassembly, FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the assembly, FIG. 3 is a crosssectional view of the assembly, and FIG. 4 is a cross sectional detailview of the spindle portions of the assembly.

Crank arm assembly 100 includes a spindle connection arrangement 102 forconnecting a crank arm 104 to bicycle crank arm assembly 100. Spindleconnection arrangement 102 is also used to connect crank arm assembly100 to a bicycle frame along a spindle rotational axis 106 around whichcrank arm assembly 100 is intended to rotate when spindle connectionarrangement 102 is connected to a bicycle frame.

Spindle connection arrangement 102 includes a first spindle portion 108,shown in FIGS. 2-4, fixed to and extending outward from crank arm 104along spindle rotational axis 106. First spindle portion 108 has twoload bearing surfaces 110 and 112, shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, that arespaced apart from one another along the length of spindle rotationalaxis 106. A second spindle portion 114 also has two load bearingsurfaces 116 and 118 that are spaced apart from one another alongspindle rotational axis 106. As shown best in FIGS. 3 and 4, secondspindle portion 114 is configured to concentrically mate with firstspindle portion 108 about spindle rotational axis 106. In the embodimentshown, second spindle portion 114 is provided as a spindle portion thatextends outwardly from a second crank arm 115.

As will be described in more detail hereinafter, spindle connectionarrangement 102 also includes a connection device 120 (shown in FIG. 3)that connects first spindle portion 108 to second spindle portion 114such that the two load bearing surfaces 110 and 112 of first spindleportion 108 each engage an associated one of the two load bearingsurfaces 116 and 118 of second spindle portion 114. The two pairs ofengaging, spaced apart, load bearing surfaces provide interconnectingsurfaces for connecting the first and second spindle portions. These twospaced apart load bearing surfaces prevent one spindle portion fromoscillating independently from the other and prevent the spindleportions from becoming misaligned from one another when the two spindleportions are connected using connection device 120.

In the embodiment shown, load bearing surfaces 110 and 116 are spacedapart from load bearing surfaces 112 and 118 by an air gap 121 thatensures these two pairs of mating surfaces form two spaced apart loadbearing, engaging surfaces. Although these load bearing surfaces areshown as being separated by an air gap, this is not a requirement of theinvention. Instead, the present invention would equally apply so long asthe two load bearing portions of the load bearing surfaces are spacedapart from one another.

The two spaced apart load bearing surfaces, referred to hereinafter astwo point stabilization, eliminates the conventional connection betweena crank arm and spindle. This two point stabilization approach createsand maintains a secure connection between the crank arm and the spindle.Because the loads imposed on the crank system are distributed over, andshared by two separate, spaced apart load bearing surfaces, the twopoint stabilization approach provides a much more reliable crankarm/spindle connection arrangement compared to conventional methods ofconnecting a crank arm to a spindle.

A spindle connection arrangement in accordance with the inventionprovides the additional benefit that this arrangement may be provided ata lighter weight than conventional spindle configurations withoutsacrificing strength and durability. This is because the loads imposedon the spindle by the crank arms are distributed over the two spacedapart bearing surfaces rather than being concentrated on the taperedsquare protrusion of conventional crank arm spindles. Also, because thesecond spindle portion 114 may be provided as a tube extending from thesecond crank arm 115 as illustrated in FIG. 3, a grease fitting 122 andgrease ports 124 (shown best in FIG. 2) may be easily incorporated intothe design. The grease ports 124 could be positioned to provide greaseto all of the moving parts of the assembly without sacrificing thestrength of the connection arrangement. This would allow regularservicing of the moving parts within the crank assembly withoutrequiring the disassembly of the crank assembly.

Although the spindle connection arrangement illustrated in FIGS. 1-4uses two spindle portions with one portion extending from each of thecrank arms, this is not a requirement of the invention. Instead, thisarrangement could include a three piece spindle. In this case, both ofthe crank arms would have a spindle portion similar to spindle portion108 extending from the crank arm along the spindle rotational axis. Eachof these crank arm spindle portions would attach to a separate, thirdspindle portion using the two point stabilization approach describedabove.

Referring now to FIGS. 5-7, a spline arrangement for connecting spindleportions 108 and 114 of crank assembly 100 will be described. Inaccordance with one aspect of the invention, spindle connectionarrangement 102 includes at least one tapered bore 126 formed into oneof the pairs of load bearing surfaces of spindle connection arrangement102. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, six tapered bores 126 are formedinto load bearing surfaces 110 and 116. Each of the tapered bores has alongitudinal axis that extends along the engaging load bearing surface110 of first portion 108 and surface 116 of second spindle portion 114.Approximately half of tapered bores 126 (indicated by reference numeral126 a in FIG. 5) are formed longitudinally into load bearing surface 110of spindle portion 108 and the other half of tapered bores 126(indicated by reference numeral 126 b in FIG. 5) are formedlongitudinally into load bearing surface 116 of spindle portion 114.

In this embodiment, connection device 120 takes the form of areplaceable spline device 128. Spline device 128 includes at least onetapered pin 130 held in an associated tapered bore 126 so as to preventcrank arm 104 from rotating independently of spindle portion 114. In theembodiment being described, spline device 128 includes six tapered pins130. Spline device 128 also includes a tapered pin retention device 132,which will be described in more detail hereinafter, for holding taperedpins 130 within tapered bores 126. Although spline device 128 isdescribed as including six tapered pins, this is not a requirement ofthe invention. Instead, it should be understood that any number oftapered pins may be used and still remain within the scope of theinvention.

One of the main advantages of the tapered pin spline arrangement is thatthe tapered pin spline mechanism is extremely simple and cost effectiveto manufacture compared to other conventional spline arrangements. Theboring operation required to bore the tapered bores can be performedwith a simple drilling or milling machine and a rotary table. Thetapered pins can be run on a screw machine lathe cost effectively.Therefore, sophisticated machining equipment is not required in order toproduce a tapered pin spline arrangement. This reduces the cost ofproducing this type of spline arrangement.

Another advantage of the tapered pin spline arrangement is that taperedpins 126 can be made from a lower strength material than the surroundingarea of the spindle portions. With this configuration, the tapered pinsare able to act as fuses in the event of an overload of stress appliedto the crank set by shearing before permanent damage occurs to thespindle portions. Replacement tapered pins could be provided to the bikeowner at significantly less cost than the cost of replacing the entirecrank set which is required when conventional crank sets fail.

Although connection device 120 has been described as being spline device128, this is not a requirement of the invention. Instead, anyconventional connection device such as a bolt or a threaded stud may beused to hold spindle portion 108 engaged with spindle portion 114 andstill remain within the scope of the invention so long as spindleportions 108 and 114 have two spaced apart bearing surfaces as describedabove.

In the embodiment described above, the number of tapered bores andassociated tapered pins is a multiple of three. This allows the use of atapered pin retaining device 132 in accordance with the invention. Asillustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6A, one embodiment of tapered pin retentiondevice 132 includes a washer 134 having holes or openings 136 cut into aperipheral edge portion 138 of washer 134. Openings 136 are formed suchthat the outside diameter of the openings are a size that allows taperedpins 130 to be pressed into the openings and retained by washer 134.This allows tapered pins 130 to be simultaneously inserted into taperedbores 126 for ease of assembly.

In the embodiment shown, the portions of tapered pins 130 that arepressed into opening 136 have a slightly smaller diameter than theremainder of tapered pins 130. This smaller diameter, indicated byreference numeral 140, assists in holding tapered pins captured withinopenings 136. Also, the smaller diameter portions 140 of tapered pins130 extend along the length of tapered pins 130 for a distance greaterthan the thickness of washer 134. This allows some freedom of movementfor the pins within the washer along the longitudinal axis of thetapered pins. This also forms heads 141 on tapered pins 130 at the endsof tapered pins 130 that are opposite the ends of the tapered pins thatare inserted into tapered bores 126. As will be described immediatelyhereafter, this freedom of movement along the longitudinal axis of thetapered pins helps allow tapered pins 130 to be held within taperedbores 126 with equal amounts of pressure on each tapered pin.

Referring now to FIGS. 6A and 6B, a biasing arrangement 142 designed inaccordance with the invention will be described. In the embodimentshown, tapered pin retention device 132 also includes a biasingarrangement 142 for placing an equal amount of pressure on each of heads141 of tapered pins 130. Biasing arrangement 142 includes a fastener143, such as a bolt, that is used to draw biasing arrangement 142against heads 141 of tapered pins 130. Biasing arrangement 142 alsoincludes a triangular shaped piece for every three tapered pins. In thiscase, since six tapered pins are used, two triangular pieces 144 and 146are used. Triangular shaped piece 144 and 146 are separated by twoBelleville spring washers 148. Triangular piece 146 and the head offastener 143 are also separated by a Belleville spring washer 148.Washers 148 are sloped, as shown best in FIG. 7, so as to allowtriangular pieces 144 and 146 some degree of freedom to wobble relativeto the longitudinal axis of fastener 143 which, in this case, coincideswith the spindle rotational axis 106. This helps allows triangularpieces 144 and 146 to exert an equal amount of pressure on each taperedpin.

As illustrated in FIG. 6B, triangular piece 146 has protrusions at thecorners that act as locators for triangular piece 144 which has noprotrusions. This keeps the triangular pieces aligned with respect tothe spacing of the tapered pins. Therefore, only one step is required toalign the triangles with the heads of the tapered pins.

The reason for the triangles is to assure that equal pressure is placedon all pins. Since three points define a plane, theoretically, if threepins were slightly higher than the rest, these three pins would receivethe majority of the pressure if a simple bolt and washer were used tocompress all six of the tapered pins. This may not be a problem if onlythree tapered pins were used, however, the triangular shape stilldirects bolt pressure better than a conventional washer and is easier toposition properly on the tapered pins.

Biasing arrangement 142 is designed so that triangular piece 144 willtouch its three tapered pins first since it is originally slightlycloser to the heads of the pins than triangular piece 146. Springwashers 148 take up the slack and put pressure on triangular piece 144until the two triangular pieces share the same approximate level. Asfastener 143 is tightened further, both triangles are then underpressure. Both triangular pieces, while they get there pressure from thesame bolt, are able to rock independently of each other to adjust toslight tapered pin height variations because of the Belleville springwashers. The spring washers also apply back pressure on the head offastener 143 which helps prevent it from loosening on its own. With thisarrangement, all of the tapered pins receive substantially an equalamount of pressure, thereby insuring that each of the tapered pins isheld firmly within tapered bores 126.

Although tapered pin retention device 132 is described as includingbiasing arrangement 142 and washer 134 for holding pins 130 together,these components are not requirements of the invention. Instead, anyappropriate pin retention mechanism may be utilized to hold tapered pins130 within tapered bores 126 and still remain within the scope of theinvention.

Although the above described spline device 128 has been described asbeing used to connect the two spindle portions of a bicycle crank armassembly, it should be understood that this novel spline arrangement maybe used to connect a wide variety of rotational members. For example, inanother embodiment of the invention, the above described spline deviceis used in a spline arrangement for interconnecting a drive member and adriven member such that the drive member is able to rotationally drivethe driven member about a given rotational axis. Using the example ofthe above described spindle arrangement, the drive member may be thefirst spindle portion 108 protruding from crank arm 104 and the drivenmember may be second spline portion 114.

Referring back to FIGS. 1-3, a quick change chain ring arrangement 150in accordance with the invention for use on a bicycle crank arm assemblysuch as crank assembly 100 will be described. As mentioned above, crankarm assembly 100 includes two crank arms 104 and 115 that rotate aboutspindle rotational axis 106 Each crank arm includes a pedal mountingpoint 151 for receiving a pedal (not shown in FIGS. 1-3). The crank armshave a crank arm length L1 extending from the end of the crank arm thatattaches to the spindle to the end of the crank arm in which pedalmounting point 151 is located. Each crank arm defines a crank armlongitudinal axis L2. The crank arms have a cross sectional shape alongthe crank arm length perpendicular to the crank arm longitudinal axis.This cross sectional shape defines a maximum cross sectional areaperpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the crank arm. In the case ofcrank arm 115, this maximum cross sectional area is located at point Aalong crank arm length L1 where the crank arm intersects with spindlerotational axis 106.

As best shown in FIG. 2, quick change chain ring arrangement 150includes a chain ring adapter 152 that attaches to crank assembly 100such that adapter 152 rotates with the crank assembly about spindlerotational axis 106. A removable chain ring support 154 is engaged withchain ring adapter 152. Chain ring support 154 has an inside diameterlarge enough that it may be removed from the bicycle without requiringthe removal of the crank arm. That is, chain ring support 154 has aminimum inside opening 155 formed into chain ring support 154 that islarger than the maximum cross sectional area of the crank arms locatedat point A. This allows chain ring support 154 to be installed onto andremoved from the crank assembly without requiring the removal of thecrank arms from the crank assembly and without requiring the removal ofthe crank assembly from the bicycle frame. A removable connecting device156 retains removable chain ring support 154 on chain ring adapter 152.As will be described in more detail hereinafter, inside opening 155 ofchain ring support 154 may also be made large enough that it will fitaround a pedal that is installed in pedal mounting point 151 therebyallowing chain ring support 154 to be removed from the crank assemblywithout requiring the pedals to be removed.

In accordance with the invention, chain ring support 154 has a shapethat allows the chain ring support to mate with chain ring adapter 152so that torque may be transmitted between chain ring adapter 152 andchain ring support 154 about crank assembly or spindle rotational axis106 without requiring the use of fasteners or other load bearing devicesto transmit the torque between chain ring adapter 152 and chain ringsupport 154. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-3, inside opening155 of chain ring support 154 has a splined shape 157 and the chain ringadapted has a mating splined shape 158 (shown best in FIG. 2) for matingwith a splined shape 157 of the chain ring support. This interlockingconfiguration allows torque to be transmitted about the crank assemblyrotational axis between the chain ring adapter and the chain ringsupport without requiring the use of fasteners or other load bearingdevices to transmit the torque between the chain ring adapter and thechain ring support. This arrangement provides the benefit that the chainring adapter may be driven in a rotational manner by the splined chainring support about the crank assembly rotational axis, yet is free to beeasily removed when pulled in a direction parallel with the crankassembly rotational axis.

Although chain ring adapter 152 and chain ring support 154 have beendescribed as having mating splined shapes, this is not a requirement ofthe invention. Instead, it should be understood that shapes other than asplined shape may be used to provide torque transmitting, matingsurfaces between the chain ring adapter and the chain ring support. Anydesired shape may be utilized and still remain within the scope of theinvention so long as the shape provides the required torque transmittingcharacteristics about the spindle or crank arm rotational axis.

As mentioned above, quick change chain ring arrangement 150 alsoincludes removable retaining device 156 that retains removable chainring support 154 engaged with chain ring adapter 152. In the embodimentshown in FIGS. 1-3, removable retaining device 156 is a removablethreaded ring that threads onto the splined adapter in a manner thatholds chain ring support 154 aligned with the splined adapter 154. Thisallows threaded ring 156 to hold the spline shape 157 of chain ringsupport 154 engaged with splined shape 158 of chain ring adapter 152 andprevents movement of chain ring support 154 in a direction parallel tocrank assembly or spindle rotational axis 106. Because threaded ring 156is not used to transmit torque between chain ring adapter 152 and chainring support 154, and because there are not substantial forces exertedaxially on chain ring support 154 parallel with spindle rotational axis106, threaded ring 156 does not need to be torqued tightly against chainring support 154. Instead, threaded ring 156 only needs to be tightenedto the extent that it does not come lose due to normal vibration duringthe use of the bicycle. This means that threaded ring 156 may beconfigured such that it only needs to be tightened by hand withoutrequiring the use of tools to torque threaded ring 156 against chainring support 154. With this configuration, the chain ring support of thepresent invention may be changed very quickly, without requiring the useof any tools.

In the embodiment shown, removable threaded ring 156 also has an insidediameter D (shown best in FIG. 15A) larger than the maximum crosssectional area of the crank arms and the pedals. As was described abovefor chain ring support 154, this allows removable threaded ring 156 tobe removed from the bicycle crank assembly without requiring the removalof the crank arms or pedals and without requiring the removal of thecrank assembly from the bicycle frame. In order to facilitate the easyremoval of threaded ring 156, threaded ring 156 may further include agripping arrangement 159 for allowing the threaded ring to be removed byhand without requiring the use of any tools. As illustrated in FIG. 1,gripping arrangement 159 takes the form of a textured surface on theexposed surface of threaded ring 156.

Referring now to FIGS. 15A-E, the process of removing and replacingchain ring support 154 will be described in detail. As shown in FIGS.15B-E and in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, chain ringsupport 154 may be removed without requiring the removal of the crankarms or pedals (indicated by reference numerals 250) from the crank armassembly and without requiring the removal of the crank arm assemblyfrom the bicycle (represented in FIGS. 15A-E by partially cut awaybicycle frame 206).

As illustrated in FIG. 15B, pedal 250 has a pedal length L3 that definesa pedal longitudinal axis L4 around which the pedal is intended torotate. Pedal 250 has a cross sectional shape perpendicular to pedallongitudinal axis L4 that defines a maximum cross sectional areaperpendicular to the longitudinal axis. In the example illustrated inFIG. 15B this maximum cross sectional area perpendicular to longitudinalaxis L4 exists along the length of the main body of the pedal and may berepresented by the cross section that would be obtained by taking asection of pedal 250 through section line S-S.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 15A-E, the assembly includes chain ringadapter 152 that is connected to and rotates with crank assembly 100about crank assembly or spindle rotational axis 106. Removable chainring support 154 is also provided and it removably engages with chainring adapter 152. As described above, chain ring support 154 has aminimum inside opening 155 formed into the chain ring support that islarger than the maximum cross sectional area of crank arm 115. As alsodescribed above, chain ring support 156 has a shape that allows thechain ring support to mate with chain ring adapter 152 so that torquemay be transmitted between the chain ring adapter and the chain ringsupport about crank assembly rotational axis 106 without requiring theuse of fasteners or other load bearing devices to transmit the torquebetween the chain ring adapter and the chain ring support. Removableretaining device 156 is also provided for retaining removable chain ringsupport 154 engaged with chain ring adapter 152.

In this embodiment, removable retaining device 156 is first removed.This is accomplished by unscrewing threaded ring 156, the retainingdevice of this embodiment, from a threaded portion 254 of chain ringadapter 152. Because threaded ring 156 has a large inside diameter D, itmay be pivoted around the spindle end of crank arm 115 at point A sothat it can be slid along the length of crank arm 115 as shown in FIG.5B. Once threaded ring 156 has been pivoted around point A and slidalong the length of crank arm 115, it is pivoted around the pedal end ofcrank arm 115 at the point that crank arm 115 and pedal 250 areconnected as illustrated in FIG. 15C. Again, since threaded ring 156 hasa large inside diameter, it may be slid along the length of pedal 250and removed from the assembly.

Removable chain ring support 154 may now be removed in a manner similarto that described above for threaded ring 156. Again, because chain ringsupport 154 is formed with large opening 155, chain ring support 154 maybe removed by manipulating chain ring support 154 around point A at thespindle end of crank arm 115, sliding it along the length of the crankarm, pivoting it around the point at which pedal 250 is connected tocrank arm 115, and finally sliding chain ring support 154 over thelength of pedal 250 as illustrated in FIGS. 15D and 15E. The removablechain ring support may then be replaced with a replacement chain ringsupport by performing the same steps described above in the reverseorder and as illustrated by viewing FIGS. 15A-E in reverse order.

FIG. 16 illustrates some variations on the above described embodiment.As described above, this embodiment includes splined chain ring adapter152 (not shown). However, the crank assembly includes threaded ring 256with protrusions 258 and chain ring support 260 to replace chain ringsupport 154 and threaded ring 156 of the previous embodiments. Threadedring 256 provides the function of the chain ring support retainingdevice in a manner similar to that described above for threaded ring156. However, in this example, threaded ring 256 includes protrusions258 that are designed to provide a more substantial gripping arrangementcompared to the gripping arrangement described above. Because of thelarge diameter of threaded ring 256, and because of the large grippingprotrusions 258 extending out from threaded ring 256, threaded ring 256may be easily removed by hand without requiring the use of a tool.

Chain ring support 260 includes a splined opening similar to thatdescribed above for chain ring support 154 and is designed to engagewith chain ring adapter 152 in the same way that was previouslydescribed. As mentioned above, because threaded ring 256 is designed toonly hold chain ring support 260 engaged with chain ring adapter 152,threaded ring 256 does not need to be overly tightened in order toretain chain ring support 260 engaged with chain ring adapter 152.

Chain ring support 260 further includes an actual chain ring 262 formedas an integral part of chain ring support 260. It should also beunderstood that additional chain rings may be attached to chain ringsupport 260 in order to provide multiple chain rings if desired.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-3, quick change chain ringarrangement 150 uses a splined chain ring adapter 152 that attaches tocrank assembly 100 such that the splined adapter rotates with the crankassembly about spindle rotational axis 106. Chain ring support 154 has aspline shape that mates with splined adapter 152 such that chain ringsupport 154 is driven in a rotational manner by splined chain ringadapter 152 about spindle rotational axis 106. In this embodiment,removable connecting device 156 takes the form of a removable threadedring that threads into splined adapter 152 in a manner that compresseschain ring support 154 against splined adapter 152. This threaded ringholds the spline shape of the chain ring engaged with the splinedadapter and prevents unwanted movement of the chain ring in a directionparallel to the spindle rotational axis. However, with the threaded ringremoved, the chain ring is free to be removed when pulled in a directionparallel with the crank assembly rotational axis. This allows theremoval of the chain ring without requiring the removal of either of thecrank arms of the crank assembly.

In the embodiment shown, the crank assembly is a mountain bike crankassembly that includes mounting points for three front sprockets. Aswill be described in more detail immediately hereinafter, the quickchange chain ring arrangement illustrated allows the outer and middlechain rings or sprockets to be removed without removing the crank arm inliterally a matter of seconds. This enables the rider to quickly changethe gearing of their bicycle through different sized front chain rings,and encourages the rider to properly clean the main chain rings toincrease life and increase performance through a properly cleaned andlubricated chain rings.

Still referring to FIGS. 1-3, a chain ring alignment system 160 designedin accordance with the invention will now be described. Chain ringalignment system 160 includes a chain ring adapter, such as chain ringadapter 152 described above, for supporting a chain ring. Chain ringadapter 152 is mounted to crank assembly 100 for rotation with the crankassembly about spindle rotational axis 106. However, chain ring adapter152 is axially movable along spindle rotational axis 106 between aretracted position and an extended position. A driving mechanism 162 isconnected to crank arm 115 for rotationally driving chain ring adapter152 about spindle rotational axis 106 while allowing the chain ringadapter to move axially from the retracted position in which chain ringadapter 152 is furthest from crank arm 115 to the extended position inwhich chain ring adapter 152 is closest to crank arm 152. An adjustingdevice 164 is provided for moving chain ring adapter 152 axially alongspindle rotational axis 106 between the retracted position and theextended position, independently from crank arm 115. This enables theproper alignment of chain ring adapter 152 relative to other componentson the bicycle without requiring the axial movement of the crank armsand without requiring the crank arms to be positioned off center withreference to the bicycle frame.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-3, chain ring adapter 152includes a threaded portion having a longitudinal axis about spindlerotational axis 106. In the embodiment shown, the threaded portion isactually provided as a separate threaded ring 167 that is press fit intochain ring adapter 152. Chain ring adapter 152 also includes two drivingholes 166 having a longitudinal axis parallel spindle rotational axis106. Driving mechanism 162 includes two driving bosses 168 that protrudeout from crank arm 115. The bosses have a longitudinal axis that extendsparallel to the crank assembly rotational axis. Bosses 168 areconfigured to engage driving holes 166 in chain ring adapter 152 inorder to be capable of rotationally driving chain ring adapter 152 aboutspindle rotational axis 106 with the rotation of crank assembly 100. Thebosses also allow axial movement of the chain ring adapter along thespindle rotational axis from the retracted position to the extendedposition. Adjusting device 164 takes the form of a threaded adjustmentdial 170 and a retaining flange piece 172. Threaded adjusting dial 170has threads that match the threaded portion 166 of chain ring adapter152. Threaded adjustment dial 170 is configured to move chain ringadapter 152 between the retracted position to the extended position asindicated by arrow 174 in FIG. 2 when threaded adjustment dial 170 isturned into and out of the matching threads of chain ring adapter 152.Retainer flange piece 172 is press fit onto spindle portion 114 suchthat threaded adjustment dial 170 is prevented from separating fromthreaded ring 167 of chain ring adapter 152 when the chain ringalignment system is attached to the crank assembly.

The above described chain ring alignment system allows a rider to adjusttheir chain rings without a tool. This uniquely allows the chain ring tomove independently of the crank arm and spindle, thus enabling the crankarms and spindle to remain perfectly centered in reference to the centerof the bicycle frame. Aside from adjusting the linear position of thechain rings, the chain ring alignment system also provides a uniqueconnection between the chain rings and the driving crank arm. Unlike allconventional crank systems, the chain rings of the chain ring alignmentsystem of the present invention are not bolted directly or clamped tothe driving crank arm. Instead, the chain ring is driven by bosses 168.This allows the alignment of the chain rings to stay perpendicular tothe spindle rotational axis, and remain virtually unaffected by anycrank arm flex that can oscillate the chain rings.

Referring now to FIGS. 8-10, a variable length crank arm arrangement 200designed in accordance with the invention and for use on a bicycle crankarm assembly 202 is also disclosed. Variable length crank armarrangement 200 includes a spindle 204 for attaching the crank assemblyto a bicycle frame 206. Spindle 204 has a spindle bearing surface 208,shown best in FIG. 10, for mounting spindle 204 to the bicycle such thatthe spindle is free to rotate about a spindle rotational axis 210. Afixed crank arm 212 (not shown in FIG. 10), having a longitudinal axis214 (shown in FIG. 8) extending substantially perpendicular to spindlerotational axis 210, is fixed to spindle 204 for rotation with spindle204 about spindle rotational axis 210. A floating crank arm 216, havinga longitudinal axis that coincides with longitudinal axis 214 of fixedcrank arm 212, is slidably connected to fixed crank arm 212 to allowfloating crank arm 216 to move in a linear motion along longitudinalaxis 214 of fixed crank arm 212 while maintaining a common longitudinalaxis with fixed crank arm 212. A control bracket 218 (shown best in FIG.9) is fixed to bicycle frame 206. Control bracket 218 may be a separatepiece that is attached to a conventional bicycle frame as illustrated inFIG. 9, or alternatively, the control bracket may be provided as anintegral part of the of the bicycle frame as illustrated in FIG. 8.

Referring now to FIGS. 9 and 10, control bracket 218 includes arotational control bearing surface 220 that defines a control rotationalaxis 222 that is parallel with, but spaced apart from, spindlerotational axis 210. Control bearing surface 220 has a control bearingradius 224 with control bearing surface 220 being positioned such thatspindle rotational axis 210 falls within control bearing radius 224 whenviewed in a plane perpendicular to spindle rotational axis 210. Acontrol arm 226 is attached to control bracket 218 for rotation aboutcontrol axis 222 along control bearing surface 220. Control arm 226 isrotatably attached to floating crank arm 216 such that the longitudinalaxis of the floating crank arm is able to remain perpendicular tospindle rotational axis 210.

With the variable length crank arm arrangement configuration describedabove, floating crank arm 216 causes control arm 226 to rotate aboutcontrol rotational axis 222 and causes fixed crank arm 212 to rotateabout spindle rotational axis 210 as floating crank arm 216 is rotatedabout control rotational axis 222 by a rider. This causes floating crankarm 216 to move back and forth along longitudinal axis 214 of fixedcrank arm 212 relative to spindle rotational axis 210. Due to thespacing between spindle rotational axis 210 and control rotational axis222, floating crank arm 216 pivots slightly back and forth relative tocontrol arm 226 as the variable length crank arm arrangement is rotatedby the rider. The overall length of the combination of the fixed crankarm and the floating crank arm varies along their common longitudinalaxis by a distance equal to twice the spacing between the controlrotational axis and the spindle rotational axis.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8-10, fixed crank arm 212 includes tworods 213A and 213B that are designed to slidably mate with or engage twoopenings 217A and 217B formed into floating crank arm 216. Openings 217Aand 217B have bearings, bushings, or some other readily providablearrangement fit into the openings for receiving rods 213A and 213B suchthat the rods may easily slide within openings 217A and 217 b whiletransferring any crank arm loads or forces between floating crank arm216 and fixed crank arm 212. This two-rod configuration provides twospaced apart connection points between floating crank arm 216 and fixedcrank arm 212. These spaced apart connection points stabilize theconnection between floating crank arm 216 and fixed crank arm 212. Thisconfiguration may also allow lighter weight components to be used forthe slidable connection arrangement than would otherwise be possibleusing an arrangement that utilized, for example, a fixed crank armhaving only a single rod slidably engaging a single opening on thefloating crank arm. Although the embodiment shown utilizes two rods asthe means for slidably connecting fixed crank arm 212 and floating crankarm 216, it should be understood that other slidable connectionarrangements may be utilized so long as floating crank arm 216 is ableto slidably move relative to fixed crank arm 212 as described herein.

In one embodiment of the variable length crank arm, control rotationalaxis 222 is spaced apart from spindle rotational axis 210 by a distancein the range of about ½″ to ⅞″. In this embodiment, control rotationalaxis 222 is located above and toward the front of the bike relative tospindle rotational axis 210. This causes the overall length of thecombination of fixed crank arm 212 and floating crank arm 216 to begreatest during the downward stroke of the crank arm arrangement as thebicycle is being ridden. This also causes the overall length of thecombination of fixed crank arm 212 and floating crank arm 216 to beleast during the upward stroke of the crank arm arrangement. Therefore,this configuration provides most of the leverage benefits of a longercrank arm with no added circumference. This leverage advantage may beincreased by increasing the spacing between the control rotational axisand the spindle rotational axis.

Besides the increase in power, this variable length crank armarrangement, may be configured to increase the ground clearance of thecrank assembly. This is accomplished by locating the control rotationalaxis above the spindle rotational axis. An added benefit of theincreased ground clearance is that this system allows for moresuspension travel on a suspension bicycle where often times moresuspension travel is desired, yet the ground clearance of the pedals isthe limiting factor.

One of the unique features of the variable length crank arm arrangementof the invention lies in the fact that it utilizes a multiple bearinghousing with eccentric bearing axis. This is a simple configuration thatcan either be adapted to current bicycle frames as shown in FIG. 9 orincorporated into the frame or sub-frame of bicycles in the future asillustrated in FIG. 8. This configuration also provides a very durableand stable configuration due to the positioning of the spindlerotational axis within the radius of the larger control arm bearingsurface and due to the relatively few pieces required to provide thearrangement.

Referring now to FIGS. 8, 11A-C, and 12A-C, a pedal connectionarrangement designed in accordance with the invention will be described.FIG. 8 illustrates a pedal 300 attached to the variable crank armarrangement described above. FIG. 11A is a plan view of pedal 300. And,FIG. 12A illustrates a bicycle shoe 302 designed in accordance with theinvention that is configured to attach to pedal 300.

As illustrated by FIG. 12A, the pedal connection arrangement of theinvention is designed to hold a bicycle shoe attached to a bicyclepedal. As is the case for conventional bicycles, pedal 300 is used todrive a bicycle crank arm having a crank arm longitudinal axis. Pedal300 has a pedal longitudinal axis 304. The pedal is connected to a crankarm, such as variable length crank arm arrangement 200 of FIG. 8, withpedal longitudinal axis 304 substantially perpendicular to the crank armlongitudinal axis 214. The pedal connection arrangement also includesbicycle shoe 302 having a gripping arrangement 306 attached to the shoe.Gripping arrangement 306 has a longitudinal axis, also indicated byreference numeral 304 in FIG. 12A. Longitudinal axis 304 runs generallyalong the ball of the shoe in a plane parallel to the sole of the shoeand perpendicular to a line extending from the toe of the shoe throughthe heel of the shoe. Gripping arrangement 306 is configured such thatthe gripping arrangement grips pedal 300 when gripping arrangement 306is engaged with pedal 300 with the longitudinal axis of the grippingarrangement coinciding with the longitudinal axis of the pedal. This maybe accomplished by pressing the gripping arrangement over the top of thepedal, or, alternatively, by positioning the gripping arrangement on theshoe adjacent to pedal 300 with longitudinal axis 304 of grippingarrangement 306 aligned with longitudinal axis 304 of pedal 300 and thenmoved along the common longitudinal axes 304 of gripping arrangement 306and pedal 300 to engage pedal 300 as indicated by arrow 308.

In the embodiment of the pedal connection arrangement shown in FIGS. 11Aand 12A, pedal 300 has a radially symmetrical cross sectional shapealong pedal longitudinal axis 304 and gripping arrangement 306 has amating radially symmetrical cavity 310. This configuration allowsgripping arrangement 306 to be connected to pedal 300 with pedal 300without regard for the rotational position of the pedal about the pedallongitudinal axis. Pedal 300 may have a shape made up of a combinationof a cylindrical shape and a spherical shape. As mentioned above,gripping arrangement 306 has a similarly mating cavity. In the specificembodiment shown in FIGS. 11A and 12 A, the pedal has a centralspherical shape 312 intersected by a cylindrical shape 313 that extendsentirely through spherical portion 312. Gripping arrangement 306 has amating spherical cavity 314 intersected by a cylindrical cavity 315. Inthis embodiment, spherical cavity 314 is designed to securely gripspherical portion 312 of pedal 300. However, in accordance with theinvention, cylindrical cavity 315 of gripping arrangement 306 may bemade a predetermined amount larger than the cylindrical shape 313 of thepedal. This configuration allows the pedal to be securely connected tothe shoe via spherical portion 312 of pedal 300 and mating sphericalcavity 314 of gripping arrangement 306. However, since cylindricalcavity 315 is larger than cylindrical portion 313 of pedal 300, pedalgripping arrangement 306 remains free to swivel to a predetermineddegree about spherical portion 312 of pedal 300. this freedom ofmovement gives more flexibility for maneuverability to the rider whilemaintaining positive contact between the shoe and the pedal.

Gripping arrangement 306 may be an independently formed gripping devicethat is attached to a separate bicycle shoe as indicted by dashed line316 in FIG. 12A. Alternatively, the gripping arrangement may be formedas part of bicycle shoe 302 as described above. Gripping arrangement 306may also be made from a pliable material that allows the rider to engagethe shoe with and release the shoe from the pedal by bending the toe ofthe shoe up out of a natural relaxed position as indicated by arrow 318and dashed line 320 in FIG. 12A. This causes gripping arrangement 306 toflex. This flexing of the foot causes gripping arrangement 306 to expandon the bottom of the shoe and therefore causes the gripping arrangementto easily be engaged with or released from the pedal. An additionalbenefit to this pliable material is that the rider may also “grip” thepedal more tightly by flexing the toe of the shoe downward. Thisdownward flexing causes gripping arrangement 306 to more tightly grippedal 300.

Another embodiment of a pedal connection arrangement designed inaccordance with the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 11B-C and 12B-C.In this embodiment, a pedal connection arrangement 350 includes a pedal352 having a pedal longitudinal axis 354 around which the pedal isintended to rotate. The pedal includes a spherical portion 356 having anouter spherical surface 358 and an engaging surface 360. Engagingsurface 360 includes at least portions of outer spherical surface 358 ofspherical portion 356 of pedal 352, and, spherical portion 356 of pedal352 is located along pedal longitudinal axis 354 such that pedal 352 hasa radially symmetrical cross sectional shape along the pedallongitudinal axis.

Pedal connection arrangement 350 also includes a bicycle shoe 362 havinga pedal gripping arrangement 364 as best shown inn FIG. 12B. Pedalgripping arrangement 364 includes a pedal gripping cavity 366. Pedalgripping cavity 366 has a spherical cavity portion 368 that has a shapethat is defined by at least a portion of a sphere such that sphericalcavity portion 368 of pedal gripping cavity 366 directly engages atleast portions of outer spherical surface 358 of spherical portion 356of pedal 352 when pedal gripping arrangement 364 is engaged withspherical portion 356 of pedal 352. This configuration allows pedalgripping arrangement 364 to securely grip at least portions of engagingsurface 360 of spherical portion 356 of pedal 352 when spherical portion356 is engaged with spherical cavity portion 368 of gripping arrangement364. This configuration also allows the pedal gripping arrangement to beengaged with the spherical portion of the pedal regardless of therotational position of the pedal about the pedal longitudinal axis.

In the embodiment of the pedal connection arrangement illustrated inFIGS. 11B-C and 12B-C, pedal 352 further includes an attachingarrangement 370 for attaching pedal 352 to a bicycle crank arm. Pedal352 also includes a cylindrical portion 372 that is designed tocooperate with pedal gripping arrangement 364 to provide an arrangementfor limiting the degree to which pedal gripping arrangement 364 is ableto swivel about an axis that is perpendicular to pedal longitudinal axis354. As best shown in FIG. 11C, pedal gripping cavity 366 includes acylindrically shaped cavity portion 374 that is larger than cylindricalportion 372 of pedal 352. This allows pedal gripping arrangement 364 tosecurely grip at least portions of engaging surface 360 of sphericalportion 356 of pedal 352, yet remain free to swivel in variousdirections about spherical portion 356 of pedal 352 to at least apredetermined degree as indicated by arrow 376 in FIG. 11C when pedalgripping arrangement 364 is engaged with pedal 352. As indicated byarrow 376, the various directions that pedal gripping arrangement 364 isable to swivel about spherical portion 356 of pedal 352 includes thedirection that is perpendicular to pedal longitudinal axis 354. That is,pedal gripping arrangement 364 is able to swivel in directions otherthan about the pedal longitudinal axis. This gives more flexibility formovement of the rider's foot while maintaining positive contact betweenthe pedal gripping arrangement and the spherical portion of the pedal.As would be understood by one skilled in the art, the degree to whichthe pedal gripping arrangement of this embodiment may swivel may becontrolled by controlling the size of cylindrical shaped cavity portion374 of pedal gripping cavity 366 compared to the size of cylindricalportion 372 of pedal 352.

As mentioned above for the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 12A, the pedalgripping arrangement may be an independently formed gripping device thatis attached to the bicycle shoe. Alternatively, the pedal grippingarrangement may be formed as part of the bicycle shoe. Also, the pedalgripping arrangement may be made from a pliable material that allows arider to release the shoe from the pedal by bending their toes up out ofa natural relaxed position causing the pedal gripping arrangement toflex thereby expanding the pedal gripping arrangement and causing thepedal gripping arrangement to release the pedal. Using a pliablematerial also allows the rider to more tightly grip the pedal by bendingtheir toes down out of a natural relaxed position causing the pedalgripping arrangement to flex thereby compressing the pedal grippingarrangement and causing the pedal gripping arrangement to more tightlygrip the pedal.

Alternatively, as illustrated in FIGS. 12B and 12C, pedal grippingarrangement 364 may include a hinge 380 located adjacent to pedalgripping arrangement 364. This configuration allows a rider to releasethe shoe from the pedal, or disengage the pedal gripping arrangement, bybending their toes up out of a natural relaxed position causing thepedal gripping arrangement to expand and release the pedal asillustrated by arrow 382 in FIG. 12C. As also illustrated best in FIG.12C, the shoe may further include a biasing arrangement 384 for biasingthe pedal gripping arrangement into a position that grips the pedal whenthe riders foot is in a natural relaxed position. In the embodimentshown, biasing arrangement 384 takes the form of a pair of coil springsmounted in the sole of the shoe along hinge 380. An additional potentialbenefit to this biasing arrangement configuration is that, when therider is off the bike and hiking or climbing, the biasing arrangementmay return some of the energy derived from absorbing the riders weightto the rider since the return spring force would assist the rider inlifting their legs.

Referring again to FIGS. 1-3, a bearing housing arrangement for use on abicycle crank assembly, designed in accordance with the invention, willnow be described. In the embodiment shown, crank assembly 100 includestwo bearing housing arrangements 400 and 402. Bearing housingarrangements 400 and 402 respectively include threaded housing portions404 and 406 that have external threads 408 and 410 for threadingthreaded housing portions 404 and 406 into mating threads provided in aconventional bottom bracket of a bicycle frame. These threaded portions404 and 406 provide an arrangement for connecting crank assembly 100 tothe bicycle frame.

In the embodiment shown, bearing housing arrangements 400 and 402 areconfigured to house needle bearings, (not shown in the figures).Therefore, threaded housing portions 404 and 406 also include needlebearing surfaces as indicated by surface 412 of threaded housing portion404. Bearing housing arrangements 400 and 402 also include removableneedle bearing races 414 and 416. These removable bearing races 414 and416 are pressed onto associated spindle portions 108 and 114.

As illustrated best in FIGS. 2 and 3, bearing housing arrangement 400also includes a thrust bearing 418, a thrust bearing spacer 420, athrust bearing seal 422, and a threaded bearing housing retaining ring424. Thrust bearing housing retaining ring 424 threads onto threadedbearing housing portion 404 to retain the outside diameter, or fixedportion, of thrust bearing 418 in its proper position. This axiallylocates thrust bearing 418 in its proper location in reference to thebicycle frame. The proper positioning of the rotating portion of crankassembly 100 is then achieved as one side of the inside diameter, orrotating portion, of thrust bearing 418 is positioned against spacer 420which is positioned against a thrust bearing shoulder 426 on spindleportion 108.

As illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14, removable bearing race 414 includes ashoulder 430 and a flange 431. Also spindle portion 108 includes ashoulder 432 and spindle portion 114 includes a shoulder 434. The sideopposite retaining ring 424 of the rotating portion of thrust bearing418 is positioned against a flange 431 of removable bearing race 414.Shoulder 430 of removable bearing race 414 fixes removable bearing race414 in its axial position along spindle rotational axis 106 in itsproper position relative to spindle portions 108 and 114, as it isclamped between shoulder 432 of spindle portion 108 and shoulder 434 ofspindle portion 114.

Spindle portion 108 further includes an additional shoulder 436. Seal422 is then positioned between shoulder 436 of spindle portion 108 andbearing spacer 420 to prevent the entry of dirt and other contaminantsinto thrust bearing 418 or the needle bearings. This thrust bearingconfiguration prevents movement of the spindle arrangement axially alongspindle rotational axis 106 when the spindle arrangement is connected tothe bottom bracket of a bicycle frame.

The bearing housing arrangements described above allow for much easierremoval and disassembly of the spindle bearings compared to conventionalspindle bearing arrangements. This encourages proper maintenance ofthese components. Also, by providing bearing races 414 and 416 asseparate press fit pieces rather than integral parts of spindle portions108 and 114, these bearing races may be easily replaced without havingto discard the spindle portions.

Most BMX bicycle frames use bearing cups that press fit into the bottombracket shell of the bicycle frame as opposed to threading in to thebottom bracket as described above. This press fit bearing configurationis not very suitable for a conventional needle bearing because thehousing of a typical needle bearing is relatively flimsy. Therefore, thedistortion caused by the dramatic press fit (which can vary betweendifferent BMX frames) could place a distorted load on the needlebearing. This press fit configuration also discourages proper care andor replacing of the needle bearings since they would be fairly difficultto remove once installed. To overcome this problem, the presentinvention provides a splined bearing cartridge assembly that isolatesthe press fit portion of the bearing arrangement from the bearings. Aswill be described in more detail hereinafter, this is accomplished byplacing the bearings in a removable cartridge.

Referring now to FIGS. 13 and 14, a splined bearing cartridge system500, designed in accordance with the invention, will be described. Inthe embodiment shown, splined bearing cartridge 500 includes two bearingrings 502 and 504 that are designed to be press fit into a bottombracket of a bicycle frame such as a BMX bicycle frame. Splinedcartridge system 500 also includes a bearing cartridge 506 and a lockring 508. In this embodiment, bearing ring 502 has a spline shape 510formed into an interior portion of bearing ring 502. Bearing cartridge506 has a mating spine shape 512 that is designed to mate with splineshape 510 of bearing ring 502.

As illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14, splined shape 512 of bearingcartridge 506 is mated with spline shape 510 of bearing ring 502 suchthat bearing cartridge 506 extends longitudinally along a spindlerotational axis 514 when assembly 500 inserted within a bottom bracketof a bicycle frame. The press fit of bearing ring 502 and the splineshapes of bearing cartridge 506 and bearing ring 502 prevent thecartridge from rotating independently of the bottom bracket of thebicycle frame.

In the embodiment being described, bearing cartridge 506 has a threadedportion 516 at the end opposite spline shape 512. Lock ring 508 isconfigured to thread onto threaded portion 516 of bearing cartridge 506so that it retains spline shape 512 of bearing cartridge 506 engagedwith spline shape 510 of bearing ring 502. This cartridge arrangementallows for easy removal of the bearings from the bottom bracket formaintenance and inspection purposes. This cartridge arrangement alsoacts as a convenient sealing system that prevents water or otherunwanted elements from entering into the needle bearings.

Although bearing rings 502 and 504 have been described as being designedto be press fit into the bottom bracket of a bicycle frame, this is nota requirement. Instead, in situations in which the bottom bracket isthreaded, bearing rings 502 and 504 would include an externally threadedportion for mating with the threaded portions of the bottom bracket.

Although the above described embodiments have been described with thevarious components having particular respective orientations, it shouldbe understood that the present invention may take on a wide variety ofspecific configurations with the various components being located in awide variety of positions and mutual orientations and still remainwithin the scope of the present invention. The present invention wouldequally apply to these various configurations. Therefore, the presentexamples are to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive, andthe invention is not to be limited to the details given herein, but maybe modified within the scope of the appended claims.

1. A bicycle shoe for releasably attaching to a bicycle pedal to hold abicycle rider's foot attached to the bicycle pedal, said shoecomprising: a pedal gripping arrangement having a pedal gripping cavityconfigured for engaging said pedal, which pedal includes a pedallongitudinal axis around which the pedal is rotatable and a partiallyspherical portion including an outer spherical surface with thepartially spherical portion of the pedal being located along the pedallongitudinal axis such that the pedal has a radially symmetrical crosssectional shape along the pedal longitudinal axis, said pedal grippingcavity having a shape that is defined by at least a portion of aspherical surface area such that the pedal gripping cavity directlyengages at least portions of the outer spherical surface of thepartially spherical portion of the pedal when the shoe is attached tothe pedal, the pedal gripping cavity configured to engage the partiallyspherical portion of the pedal for connection of the shoe with the pedalin any position without regard for the rotational position of the shoeabout the pedal longitudinal axis, the pedal gripping cavity alsoconfigured to at least partially surround the partially sphericalportion of the pedal while remaining free to swivel in variousdirections about the partially spherical portion of the pedal to atleast a predetermined degree when the shoe is attached to the pedal, thevarious directions including directions in addition to rotation aboutthe pedal longitudinal axis, and wherein the pedal gripping arrangementis made from a pliable material that allows a rider to disconnect theshoe from the pedal by bending their toes up out of a natural relaxedposition causing the pedal gripping arrangement to flex therebyexpanding the pedal gripping cavity and causing the pedal grippingcavity to disconnect from the pedal.
 2. A bicycle shoe according toclaim 1 wherein the shoe includes a sole and the pedal grippingarrangement is an independently formed gripping device that is attachedto the sole of the bicycle shoe.
 3. A bicycle shoe according to claim 1wherein the pedal gripping arrangement is formed as part of the bicycleshoe.
 4. A bicycle shoe according to claim 1 wherein the pedal grippingarrangement is made from a pliable material that allows a rider to moretightly grip the pedal by bending their toes down out of a naturalrelaxed position causing the pedal gripping arrangement to flex therebycompressing the pedal gripping cavity against the outer sphericalsurface of the partially spherical portion of the pedal to cause thepedal gripping arrangement to more tightly grip the pedal.
 5. A bicycleshoe according to claim 1 wherein the pedal gripping arrangementincludes an arrangement for limiting the degree to which the pedalgripping arrangement is able to swivel about an axis that isperpendicular to the pedal longitudinal axis.
 6. A bicycle shoeaccording to claim 5 wherein the pedal gripping cavity includes acylindrical shaped cavity portion that intersects with and extendsentirely through the spherically shaped portion of the pedal grippingcavity, the cylindrical portion of the pedal gripping cavity providingthe arrangement for limiting the degree to which the pedal grippingarrangement is able to swivel about an axis that is perpendicular to thepedal longitudinal axis.
 7. A bicycle shoe according to claim 1 whereinthe pedal gripping cavity contacts only a portion of the partiallyspherical surface area portion at any given orientation of the shoe withrespect to the pedal.